


Smile

by SomeRainMustFall



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Minor Violence, Pre-Strex Kevin, Strexcorp is Evil, Torture, of course
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-07
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-07-12 20:47:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7122022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SomeRainMustFall/pseuds/SomeRainMustFall
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Do you believe in a Smiling God, Kevin?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Smile

A blinding headache was the first thing that Kevin was aware of, his heart pounding loudly in his ears as he slowly came back to himself. Seconds later, he felt the pain, radiating up his arms, then down his legs, until there wasn't an inch of him spared, eliciting a cry from his lips. Forcing his eyes open, he was met with nothing but yellow, glowing lights burning down on him. He groaned, meaning to reach up and shield his face, only to find he was unable to move. He was...restrained? Why? What was going on? He...he couldn't _remember_...  
  
Panicking, he briefly struggled, quickly going still when all that did was intensify the pain, and jumped when he heard an unfamiliar voice. 

"You're awake! Welcome back."

Kevin blinked. His vision was finally clear enough, and he turned his head to look over at the figure now looming over him from the left. Gently, a hand settled onto Kevin's shoulder, and Kevin glanced over. There was something on their wrist...a brand...a _logo._

_StrexCorp._

Oh, now he remembered. He remembered being in his booth, at the radio station. He remembered speaking so terribly of the awful corporation, locking himself away, speaking to anyone who was left until the very last moment, until the door had been broken down, until a fist had connected with his face and knocked him down, boots kicking into him, until he'd been grabbed and something sharp had been put to his neck, sending him into darkness.

Kevin let out a screech, trying to yank away. "Don't touch me, StrexCorp scum!" 

With a chuckle, the man pulled away, holding his hands up as if in surrender.  _If only._

"Apologies," he mused, and then tapped the restraint on Kevin's wrist. "For these, too. You nearly killed one of our employees."

Kevin smiled. He didn't remember that, but he wished he did. 

"Ah, smiling! That's good! You always look so unhappy, Kevin!"

The smile vanished. The cheerful voice saying his name sent nausea through him. "You _disgust_ me."

"No need to be hostile, darling." 

Ugh, that was worse! "Who the hell are you? What do you want? You already have my fucking show, my station, my town! What's there left to take?"

Happily, the man held his hand out, as if Kevin could (or _would_ ) shake it. "Elias Rosales," he said. "It's a pleasure to meet you. But enough small talk. What's left, dear Kevin, is you. And StrexCorp will have you."

There was a soft beep somewhere close to Kevin, and then an agony so intense he nearly blacked out washed over him. He screamed, writhing, and then, as quickly as it'd started, it was gone. He was left gasping, trembling, eyes wide as his vision slowly cleared back out. Elias was leaning over him, still smiling. 

"What...was..."

"Do you believe in a Smiling God, Kevin?"

Kevin blinked, staring over at the man. "Wh...what?"  
  
The pain returned, and again Kevin screamed.

When it faded, Elias repeated himself. 

"Fuck you! F-fuck StrexCorp! Fuck— _aahh!_ " 

Elias held up a small remote, casually, looking bored despite his never-fading smile. If his other hand hadn't been tucked into his pocket, he probably would have been looking at his nails. Eventually, after much longer than the last two times, he clicked it, and the pain was gone. Kevin was barely conscious, panting, and Elias grabbed Kevin's chin, forcing him to make eye-contact, digging sharp nails into Kevin's cheeks to bring him back.

"You're under our control," Elias said, as if it were nothing. "That is a fact you're going to have to come to live with."

Wearily, Kevin licked his lips, struggling to speak. "Not...no. Not. I'm not!"

"You're wearing a lovely piece of technology," Elias continued, releasing Kevin to walk around the table he was strapped to. "Light-weight, simple, and so very effective. A press of a button," he demonstrated briefly, and Kevin convulsed. 

"There are other uses," he continued, shrugging. "Medication, which we'll get to in a moment. These." He clicked something else, and a sharp pulse of electricity through him drew another cry from Kevin's mouth, leaving his neck aching, feeling burned. Only now did he realize that there was something around his throat, something causing all of the pain. "Something for when you misbehave that won't knock you off your feet."

Kevin struggled against the straps again, and Elias touched Kevin's foot, as if to calm him. "Now, your medication. You'll be taking Strex Meds! Well, they'll be injected into your bloodstream. How fun! You have too many of those pesky emotions, right now...sadness, fear, anger. Ooh, there's that glare again! So much anger! But don't worry, darling, you won't feel them very much longer!" He paused, letting out a sigh. "I do, however, have a few things I've been asked to do before all that." He roamed around the table again, back behind Kevin's head where Kevin couldn't see. There was a lot of noise, metallic clanging, and Kevin felt his breathing speed up. He didn't know what Elias was doing, but knew it wouldn't be good.  
  
Moments later, he felt something sharp under his chin. It was not the same thing he'd felt before, which he realized now must have been the prick of a needle. This was...different, cold, and it pushed up until Kevin tilted his head in the direction it wanted, looking up at Elias, who was now smiling down at him. "Do you believe in a Smiling God, Kevin?"

"No." Kevin breathed. 

"Wrong." The knife embedded into Kevin's shoulder, and Kevin gasped.  
  
"Do you believe in a Smiling God?"

"Fuck off! Fuck you! Fuck your Smiling God!"

"Wrong again!" Cheerfully, Elias sliced down Kevin's arm, and Kevin screamed. 

"Do you—"

"No! Never! I never will! Kill me! Torture me! Never! You won't take me! You won't! I won't let you! I won't!" Tears unwillingly began to stream down Kevin's face. "You've taken everything else! You won't take me!" 

Elias hummed. He pet Kevin's hair, just once, gently. "We already have," he said. "You just haven't accepted it yet. You'll be happy about it, soon! Ah! You know what you're missing? A smile! All good StrexCorp employees have a smile, especially the Voice! Smile for me, Kevin? Smile for us? For your God?"

Kevin spat at Elias, wrenching his head up to attempt to bite Elias's hand. His teeth just barely made contact with skin, and Elias pulled back, then slapped Kevin across the face with every bit of strength he could find. Kevin's head snapped to the side, neck making an audible click, and then the agony was back, staying too long, much too long, and only when Kevin could take no more did it stop. Elias slapped him again, softer, on both sides of his face. "Hey now, don't pass out on me. We're not through."

Too weak to argue, Kevin laid still, and Elias seemed pleased. "Good. Now, just smile. Just...say yes."

Kevin blinked, very slowly. He didn't reply, and he definitely didn't smile, and so Elias placed the knife to Kevin's lips, tracing them, just barely drawing blood. "Last chance. Trust me, you want to comply."

"Go to hell." Kevin said.  
  
Elias shrugged, forcing Kevin's mouth open, and shoved the blade to one edge, slicing over an inch into Kevin's cheek. Kevin let out a scream, and almost immediately began choking on his own blood, unable to breathe. Elias didn't give him time to recover before doing the same to the other side, and Kevin coughed and gasped, desperate for air, turning his head to one side and spitting out a mouthful of red, gagging. Elias made a soft, cooing sound and grabbed a handful of Kevin's hair, yanking. "That looks so much better! Oh, your smile is wonderful, Kevin!"  
  
Kevin began to weep, violent, heaving sobs wracking his body, and Elias chuckled. "Sshh! Don't worry! You'll feel better soon!" He leaned down, pressing his lips right to Kevin's ear, tongue licking away blood that ran down from Kevin's wounds. "Do you believe in a Smiling God, Kevin?" 

When Kevin gave no answer, Elias stood up, grabbed Kevin's right hand, and promptly snapped Kevin's index finger. _Snap._ Kevin's body jerked, and he let out another shriek, cut off as Elias broke his middle finger, too. _Snap_. "I'm _waiting._ "  
  
"Stop! Stop! Please!"

"That's not the answer I need." _Snap. Snap. Snap._

Kevin wailed in agony, throwing his head to the side. "Please! Stop!"

Elias sighed, moving onto Kevin's wrist, and the moment he snapped that Kevin was screaming, "Yes! Yes! Please! Stop! Just stop! Just _stop!_ " 

Elias paused. "Yes what?"

"Please...please..."  
  
Elias grabbed the knife again, pushing it to just below Kevin's ribs. "Yes _what,_ Kevin?"

"Don't! I can't! Please!"  
  
The knife shoved its way into Kevin's side, up to the handle, and lights flashed before Kevin's eyes. " _Stop!_ "

Elias twisted the knife, and Kevin was sick, coughing and choking, going absolutely limp when he'd finished. "Please...please...no...stop..."

"You were doing good, Kevin. I just want to hear you say it. Or do I really have to _remove_ something? How about this finger?" He pressed the knife to Kevin's left index finger. "Aren't you left-handed, darling? Don't you need this? How about I take the whole hand? Yes, I think that's a good idea." He dragged the knife up to Kevin's wrist, started to slice, and then stopped when Kevin shouted, " _I believe!_ "

"Hmm. I don't think I quite heard you!"  He reached into his pocket and sent another pulse of electricity through Kevin. 

"Aahh! I...I...I...believe..." Kevin gasped, more blood leaking down his cheeks, mixing with tears, and Elias leaned close. "You believe in what?"

"God..."

"Hm?" Another pulse, and Kevin only shuddered. 

"Sm-m- Smilin' God...I...I believe." 

"Do you believe in a Smiling God, Kevin?"

"Yes...yes. Yes." He couldn't fight any longer. He could take no more pain. Maybe once he recovered...maybe when he regained his strength...but he was too weak. Maybe...maybe he'd always been too weak. 

"Say it."

"I...believe...in...a...Smiling...G-God."

"And...again."

Kevin swallowed hard, eyes starting to roll back, and Elias slapped his cheek. "No. Stay awake, or you'll wake up without your hand. Repeat it."

"I...b-believe...in...a...Smiling...God."

"Once more!"

Kevin said it again, and then again, until Elias seemed to be satisfied. So satisfied he planted a quick kiss onto Kevin's bloodied lips, though Kevin hardly noticed. It was taking all of his focus to stay conscious. 

"Good boy! Perfect! Now, this will be much less painful than all of that!"

Kevin felt warmth radiate down from his neck, throughout his limbs, lessening the pain just a bit. His mind clouded over, replacing everything with nothing. 

Nothing but...nothing but...what was that...happiness? Yes. Happy. He was happy. He was  _happy._

He smiled, despite the pain, and felt his wrists and ankles released. He sat up, using his good hand to touch the metal collar around his neck, the other cradled close to his chest. 

"We'll get that tended to, darling," Elias said, nodding, but Kevin didn't care about that. He cared about...StrexCorp. He cared about...pleasing the Smiling God. 

"Come on, we've much to discuss." Elias said, gesturing Kevin to follow, and then stopped. "Ah. One more thing."

Kevin watched, blankly, as Elias went back over to the cart he'd clearly gotten the knife from, and then, as he came back over, he took Kevin's uninjured wrist, pressing something burning hot to the inside. Kevin jerked but made no sound, staring down at the branded S as Elias pulled away, tossing the device onto the table and then taking Kevin's hand. "Once more, Kevin. What do you believe in?"

"I believe in the Smiling God." Kevin said, cheerfully, smiling up at Elias. "StrexCorp is everything."

"Oh, you're going to do just wonderfully!" Elias said, patting Kevin's head with his other hand, and then led the Voice— _their_ Voice—out into the brightly lit hallway.

 


End file.
